R&B trio After 7 returns to the scene with a new album titled Unfinished Business via the SoNo recording group. New member Danny McClain joins founding members Kevon Edmonds and Keith Mitchell for the group’s fifth project. McClain replaces Melvin Edmonds (who passed away in May of 2019) and Melvin’s son Jason, who joined the group when his dad fell ill. In hindsight, you could say the CD is a tribute to Melvin, and the Unfinished Business is getting one more project out.
After 7 released “Bittersweet” as the first single this past spring which found the trio adapting their signature sound for 2021.”No Place Like You,” a lovely ballad, was the next single, which features Kevon’s lush vocals on the opening. After 7 opens up their latest project with “Extra Mile,” a song about putting forth that extra effort to get the attention of someone you may be interested in.
Stokley Williams of Mint Condition joins the group for “The Day,” a mid-tempo bop that I imagine will sound great in concert. “Made A Man Of Me” and “Sing A Love Song” are two more standouts. As a husband, both of the songs hit home for me with the message in the lyrics.
The bulk of the production of the CD comes from Damon Thomas and his team, with Stokley Williams contributing two numbers as well. I also loved that the group found time to include interludes from Melvin, where he can provide the wisdom of a seasoned veteran.
After 7 avoids using trap beats or autotune to appeal to a younger crowd. Instead, they focus on providing listeners with quality R&B. Unfinished Business is necessary for your music collection.
Final Grade: A-
Unfinished Business is available on all streaming platforms. In addition, physical copies of the release can be purchased on-line
There are some albums you revisit because of nostalgia, and then there are albums you return to because they remind you just how high the standard used to be. Anita Baker’s Rapture falls into that second category. Released in 1986, the album did more than make Baker a star. It helped define what sophisticated, grown R&B could sound like without losing any soul, sensuality, or personality.
Gwen Stefani had already established herself as a significant force with No Doubt when she released her debut solo album, *Love. Angel. Music. Baby* in 2004. This week, while my iPod was on shuffle, one of my favorite songs from that project, “The Real Thing,” came on. Although the original version has an upbeat new-wave feel, the Slow Jam Mix takes it to another level and is the perfect choice for this week’s Slow Jam Saturday.
Unless you’re a music purist, mentioning Randy Jackson from the famous family is likely to elicit a joke. However, any serious Jackson fan knows that Randy had musical achievements long before the punchlines. Before he was old enough to buy a drink, he had already co-written “Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)” and “Lovely One” with Michael Jackson.